Leopoldo López is charismatic, handsome, a family man, and an expert at political theater (Jorge Silva/Reuters)

Leopoldo López, who turned himself in to authorities this week, faces up to ten years in prison for his role in the anti-government protests this month in Venezuela.PanAmPost reported:

Venezuelan political opposition leader and founder of the Popular Will Party, Leopoldo López, will spend the next 45 days in the Ramo Verde jail in Los Teques. During that time, the Public Prosecutor’s Office will decide whether it seeks to convict him of the alleged planning of the violent incidents that happened after the opposition rally on February 12 in the center of Caracas.

Judge Ralenis Tovar Guillén delivered the detention measure today at 1:00 a.m. inside the military prison where López is held. She made use of a “mobile court” unit — basically a bus repurposed to function as a court of law, allegedly to “protect the life and integrity of the accused,” as stated by the prosecution.

Guillén dismissed the objection of Juan Carlos Gutiérrez, López’s lawyer. According to Gutiérrez, the judge’s decision violates legal and constitutional dispositions of due process: the audience should have taken place in a proper court of law.